21: A Europe-Wide Voice for Access, Equity and Inclusion at Higher Education Institutions

The EAN is the only Europe-wide, non-governmental organisation for widening participation in higher education. The EAN speaks up for access, equity, diversity and inclusion in education wherever a voice is needed; it offers research and consultancy on issues of access and inclusion at all levels, it encourages better policy making, connects practitioners with policy makers, and provides advise to its member organisations on access-related matters.

Mary Tupan-Wenno is the executive director of ECHO, Center for Diversity Policy in The Hague, the Netherlands. Her professional involvement on diversity and inclusion developments in (higher) education started when she was working for the government. She worked for the Dutch Ministry of Education Culture and Science as a policy advisor at the Department of Higher Education. Mary has more than 20 years of experience with policy and program development on the area of improving access and success of underrepresented groups in higher education, in particular ethnic minority students. Mary is a founding member of the European Access Network (1991) and is currently the President of the Executive Board of EAN. EAN provided a network to broaden her focus on the area of diversity and inclusion in higher education and to expand international collaboration.